The 2009 Confederations Cup is off and running and plenty of encouragement can be taken from this as we look forward to the World cup in South Africa next year.
Ellis Park stadium in Johannesburg was the venue for the opening ceremony of Africa’s first major Fifa tournament and it was buzzing with excitement and vibrant colour as the tournament intro burst into life. Nearly 50,000 fans packed into the stadium to watch the ceremony and opening game.
The hosts;Bafana (South Africa) were unable to add to the opening day fun as they drew a blank in a goaless draw against Iraq in Group A. The other game from that group resulted in a 5-0 Demolition of New Zealand by European champions Spain. Fernando Torres hit a 17 minute hat-rick before Cesc Fabregas and David Villa completed the rout.
